The subject matter described and/or illustrated herein relates generally to pluggable electronic modules.
Various types of fiber optic and metal based transceivers that permit communication between electronic host equipment and external devices are known. Such transceivers include a pluggable electronic module that is constructed according to various standards for size and compatibility, for example the Small Form Factor Pluggable (SFP) module standard, the 10 Gigabit Small Form Factor Pluggable (XFP) module standard, and the Quad Small Form Factor Pluggable (QSFP) module standard.
The pluggable electronic module(s) of a transceiver are plugged into a receptacle assembly that is mounted on a circuit board within the host equipment. The receptacle assembly includes a guide frame, or cage, having a front that is open to an interior compartment. An electrical connector is disposed at a rear of the cage within the interior compartment. When a pluggable electronic module is plugged into the receptacle assembly, and more specifically the interior compartment of the cage, the module mates with the electrical connector to electrically connect the module to the circuit board.
Pluggable electronic modules typically include a latch assembly that cooperates with a latch element on the cage to latch the module to the receptacle assembly. Specifically, the latch assembly of a pluggable electronic module includes a latch element that engages the latch element of the cage to hold the module within the interior compartment of the cage. But, an amount of over-travel of the pluggable electronic module into the interior compartment of the cage may be required to ensure that the latch element of the module sufficiently engages the latch element of the cage to latch the module to the cage. For example, an amount of over-travel of the pluggable electronic module into the interior compartment of the cage may be required to ensure that the latch element of the module is fully received and seated within an opening of the latch element of the cage. But, the over-travel may result in inconsistency in the seating depth of the pluggable electronic module within the interior compartment of the cage. As signal speeds continue to increase, the inconsistency in the seating depth of the pluggable electronic module may degrade the signal integrity of the transceiver. Accordingly, at least some known transceivers include a biasing feature (e.g., a spring) that urges the pluggable electronic module to a positive stop location once the latch elements have sufficiently engaged. But, urging the pluggable electronic module to the positive stop location may bind the latch assembly, which may make it difficult to actuate the latch assembly to unlatch the module from the cage.